*Starry White Aster.* _Aster multiflorus._ Found in August and September, in dry open fields, and waste places. The stalk (from 1 to 2 feet in height) is leafy and shrubby in growth, and the branches are long and curving; it is slender, and rough to the touch. Green. The lowest leaves are broad lance-shaped, pointed at each end, the margin sometimes notched; the upper leaves are long, and narrow, with an entire margin, and diminishing in size till they become line-like near the top of the stalk. The midrib shows plainly, the texture is firm. The color is gray-green, rather dark. The leaves are set immediately upon the stalk, closely and irregularly, and generally alternate. The disc flowers are few; yellow, changing to brown. The ray flowers are fine and small, 10 to 15 in number; white. The cups very small; silvery green. The heads are arranged in profusion along the leafy branches. The feathery prettiness of these curving spires of green and white loses nothing of its attraction because of its plentiful growth in barren places amidst the one-toned monotony of the Goldenrods. The quality of its green deserves especial regard. [Illustration: STARRY WHITE ASTER: A. multiflorus.] *Early Purple Aster.* _Aster puniceus._ Found in August in damp or swampy places. The stalk varies from 3 to 5 feet in height, and is widely branching; the fibre is coarse, and it is roughened by hairs. The color is green, very often becoming purple near the foot. The leaf is a long oval (near the foot sometimes fully 3 inches long), with strong and hairy midrib, and a slightly notched margin; the edge and upper surface are disagreeably rough to the touch. In color light green, the midrib sometimes purple. The arrangement is alternate. The disc flowers are yellow, turning to tawny; the ray flowers (20 to 30 in number) are long, and of a delicate light purple. The cups are composed of several rows of long, fine, spreading green parts. The heads are arranged in small groups, set on short stems, which rise from the angles of the leaves. Though somewhat awkward in manner of growth the blossoms of this early Aster are very pretty and profuse. The rays, as they lie folded in the bud, are silvery pale. [Illustration: EARLY PURPLE ASTER: A. puniceus.] *Pointed-leaved Aster.* _Aster acuminatus._ Found in August in rich woods (Mountains of Vermont). It grows about 1 foot high, and has a slender, sometimes zigzag stalk, which is slightly rough, and bears the leaves and flowers clustered at the top. The leaf, from 2 to 4 inches long, tapers at tip and base, and is coarsely toothed on the edge; the surface is a little hairy, and the texture is thin; the leaves, set directly on the stalk, are alternate at short distances, giving the effect of a whorl of leaves. Color green.